Washer for vegetables, etc.



WASHER FOR VEGETABLES, ETC

Filed Feb. 7, 1923 20 4; ZZ-Zvz ii/JAY.

Patented May 29, 1 923. I

UNITED STATES OGDEN S. SELLS, OF BUFFALO, NEWXDRK.

wasnnn roa vnenrannns, Ere.

Application filed February 7, 1923. Serial No. 617,520.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, OGDEN S. SELLS, a citizen of' the United States, residing at Buffalo, in the county of Erie and State of New York, have invented new and useful Improvements in Washers for Vegetables,

' &c., of which the following is a specification.

. juring the material handled.

This invention relates to a machine for washing the adhering dirt and dbris from fruits and vegetables.

. The object of this invention is to provide a comparatively small and compact washer of this character which will rapidly clean the vegetables or fruit without clogging up the interstices in the washer and without in- In the accompanying drawings: Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinal section through the washer. Figure 2 is an enlarged vertical' transverse section, on an enlarged scale, of said washer taken on line 22, Fig. 1. Figures .3 and 4 are fragmentary longitudinal sections of the lower parts of the head and tail ends of the washing drum or reel, showing the construction of the end rings and separator bars carried thereon. Figure 5 is a still larger. fragmentary, vertical transverse section taken on line 5-5, Fig. 3.

Similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views.

Preparatory to commercially canning or otherwise treating vegetables and fruit, such for instance as tomatoes, it is desirable and hygienic to put the same through a preliminary water washing process, so as to remove the various kinds of dirt and dbris which is usually found adhering to said fruit or vegetables as they come into the canning factory. It is very desirable that this operation be accomplished uninterruptedly in a comparatively small andcompact washing machine, and without bruising the surface of the material being handled. This is very successfully eflected in the machine of the present invention, the construction of which is as follows:

The main frame 10 consists essentially of two pairs of substantially verticallegs or upright posts 11' which are transversely joined together by cross bars 12 and are lengthwise connected together by longitudinal bars 13. Projecting inwardly from each pair of upright posts 11 are pairs of brackets 14 on which are suitably journaledpairs of lower supporting rollers 15. Arranged 'outer side of the-reel bars about mi lengthwise within this frame is a rotary washing real or drum which has its axis inclined from its end toward its rear end and through which the material to be washed, ;such as tomatoes or the like, wise from the front or head. end to the rear or tail end ofthe same. This reel, in its preferred construction, comprises a plurality of longitudinal supporting or separating bars 16 which are arranged in a circumferential row and are spaced apart to form longitudinal slots which alternate with said slots and permitthe passage of water and dirt from the inner side of the reel to the exterior thereof. Surrounding the row of supporting bars at the front and rear ends thereof, are front and rear supporting rings 17 and 18 each of which has an outer band 19 provided with an outwardly opening channel 20 which receives one pair of said supporting rollers 15 and is rotatably mounted thereon. The supporting bars engage their outer'sides to the bands of the supporting rings and may be. secured thereto by rivets 21, as shown, or in any other suitable manner.- The reel is held with its supporting rings in engagement with said supporting rollers by retaining rollers 22 arranged on the upper part of the main frame and engaging with the upper parts of the channels in the supporting rings.

Rotary movement may be imparted to the reel in any suitable manner, for example, by. a driving chain belt 23 passing around a gear ring 24 secured circumferentiall to the d way of the length of the same. y

The tomatoes or other fruits or vegetables to be washed, are directed into the head-end of the reel by a feed hopper 25 mounted on the adjadent part of the main frame. Dur ing the rotary movement of the reel, this moves length- I material moves lengthwise through the reelfrom the head end to the tail end thereof, and during this movement the dirt is removed therefrom by a spray of water delivered upon the same by a perforated wate' conducts the same to a sewer or drain. As the reel rotates the fruit therein is gradually lifted on one side so as to produce a tumbling or transversely rolling action of the fruit within the reel, removal of the dirt' therefrom.

It has been found in practice, that when the inner corners of the longitudinal supporting bars of the reel are permitted to protrude into the path of the tomatoes, or the like, under treatment, that the engagement of this material therewith causes the skin or surface of the same to be bruised or injured and thus reduces its quality and r saleability.

To avoid such mutilation of the fruit, means are provided for preventing the same engaging with these corners of the supporting bars and this is preferably accomplished by providing the front edge of the band of the front supporting ring with an inwardly projecting circumferential flange or rim 29 which is arranged adjacent to the front ends of the supporting bars and providing the rear edge of the band of the rear supporting ring with an inwardly projecting circumferential flange or rim '30 which is arranged adjacent to the rear end of the supporting bars. cumferential surfaces of the front and rear flanges 29, 30 therefore form guards 'or shields which cover the inner front and rear corners of the supporting bars of the washing reel whereby the tomatoes or the like upon passing from the feed hopper into the reel will be carried safely over the inner front corners of the supporting bars without permitting these corners to bruise the fruit and likewise carrying the same. from these bars at the tail end of the reel into the receptacles which receive the fruit without permitting the inner rear corners of these bars to di into the fruit and breaking the skin or a ecting the same injuriously otherwise. I

The front guard flange 29 is preferably made comparatively narrow so that the fruit will be acted upon as quickly as possible by the lifting and rolling effect of the supporting bars, while the rear guard flange 30 is made compara-tivelywide so as to carry the fruit beyondthe frame a sufiicient extent to ensure proper delivery of the same into a receptacle.

By thus saving the fruit from the possibility of being injured while being washed, the quality of the same is not impaired and thereby expediting the The inner sides or cir-- the same presents a much more attractiveappearance to the trade which results in yielding a better price and greater demand for the same.

This invention enables this to be accomplished by means which are exceedingly simple in construction and does not increase thecost of the machine to any appreciable extent and also without reducing the output of the machine or reducing its efiiciency in other respects.

I claim as my invention:

1. A washer for vegetables and the like comprising a rotary reel having a plurality of longitudinal bars arranged in an annular row, and a supporting ring upon which said bars are mounted and the inner sides of which are flush with the innermost surface of said ring.

2. A washer for vegetables and the like having a reel which rotates about an inclined axis and through the inner side of which the material to be washed passes from the elevated front end to the depressed rear end thereof, said reel comprising a plurality of longitudinal bars arranged in a circumferential row and spaced apart from each other, and a supporting ring having an outer band engaging with the outer side of said bars and having an inwardly projecting flange arranged adjacent to the ends of said bars and having its innermost surface flush with the inner sides of said bars.

3. A washer for vegetables and the like having a reel which rotates about an inclined axis and through theinner side of which the material to be washed passes from the elevated front end to the depressed rear end thereof, said reel comprising a plurality of longitudinal b-ars arranged in a circumferential row and spaced apart from each other, and front and rear supporting rings surrounding said bars and each having an outer band engaglng the outer side of said bars, and said front ring being provided at the front edge of its band with a narrow inwardly projecting flange which is arranged ad acent to the front ends of said bars and has its inner side flush with the inner sides of said bars, and said rear ring being provided at its rear edge with a wide inwardly projecting flange arranged adjacent to the rear ends of said bars and having its inner side flush with the inner side of said bars.

OGDEN S. SELLS. 

